As the Brexit clock ticks, EU gets ready for a withdrawal agreement

For the EU, the withdrawal agreement is the best possible compromise to reduce the uncertainty and damage caused by Brexit and to ensure the UK's orderly withdrawal from the EU

The European Union has expressed its regret at the rejection of the Brexit withdrawal agreement by the UK parliament. It also recognises there is not a sufficient majority in the UK parliament for a Brexit solution. As Guy Verhofstadt, Brexit coordinator for the European parliament, put it:

The UK parliament has said what it doesn’t want. Now is the time to find out what UK parliamentarians want.

While the outcome of the vote is no surprise to the EU, one might be able to hear a slight exasperation in the voice of Michel Barnier, the EU’s